Common Causes of Drain Blockages

So you’ve just had a plumber come in and unblock your drains, and you want to know what you can do to avoid clogging in the future. Fortunately, it doesn’t take any big lifestyle change to keep your drains open and working properly – just a bit of common sense and forethought. While there are lots of ways drains can potentially clog, any professional will tell you that all of those options boil down to a handful of extremely common examples that make up the bulk of their work. Read on to learn more.

Be careful what you put down there

Whether it’s the kitchen sink or the toilet, many people have an unfortunate habit of putting things down the drain that they shouldn’t. In the kitchen, watch out for grease, fats and oils, which can congeal and build up, reducing and eventually cutting off water flow. One solution is to wipe the liquid up with paper towels and throw those in the bin. It’s always best to avoid putting any of these substances down the drain, but if you have no alternative, always allow hot oils and fats to cool in the pan before disposal. Hot oils can severely damage pipes.

The toilet is also prone to clogging, many people thinking that the rules are more flexible as the drain’s diameter is larger. Cat litter – especially clumping varieties – can rapidly expand on contact with water, and is a fantastic way to quickly block your toilet. But less obvious objects also pose a hazard. Nappies, women’s sanitary products and even ‘flushable’ wet wipes all pose a hazard to your drain. Flushing these absorbent products leads to them swelling up in the pipes and becoming trapped. Don’t believe anything you read on a packet – the only flushable thing is purpose-made toilet paper.